Battery test

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The facility is designed to provide design solutions for high-voltage battery pack systems in hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles.

‘Electrification of the vehicle is a critical element of automakers’ strategies for achieving the 35-mile-per-gallon CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) regulations,’ said Karina Morley, Ricardo’s global vice-president of Controls and Electronics.

‘The Battery Systems Development Center is a benchmark facility that enables Ricardo to evaluate and optimise batteries throughout the development cycle from the early stages, through battery pack production and integration into the vehicle.’

In the Battery Systems Development Center, prototype battery pack systems undergo exhaustive development in specially built development chambers.

According to the West Sussex-based company, each chamber will feature high-capacity battery cyclers, high-voltage instrumentation, hardware-in-the-loop systems and other equipment to allow the development of battery systems in simulated vehicle environments.

Once a battery pack design is verified in a safe, simulated environment, the battery system can be integrated into and further developed on a vehicle in Ricardo’s adjoining garage facility.